Kix Brooks jumps into fight against Cloud Hill project at Nashville's Greer Stadium

Country music star Kix Brooks has joined the opposition to Nashville Mayor Megan Barry's proposal to redevelop the old Greer Stadium property.

Brooks, who has known to weigh in and has lent his support to Civil War preservation causes in the past, including the protection of Fort Negley, announced his opposition in a dramatic Facebook post on Tuesday.

"There is a battle looming in Nashville," Brooks said to begin his Facebook post. "The skirmish lines are in place. The fight for territory is ongoing. Both side(s) are searching for intelligence on the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition.

"All this is happening much the way it did in Nashville just over 150 years ago…"

Barry favors tearing down the old baseball stadium to build housing, creator and maker space and retail as part of the Cloud HIll development led by record producer T Bone Burnett, developer Bert Matthews and financier Tom Middleton.

Opponents have rallied against the project, citing the property's close proximity to the Union army's Fort Negley, which was built during the Civil War. A combination of slaves and freed slaves, who built the fort, camped on the land where the unused ballpark is located. Some historians say it is among the first sites where freed slaves received military training.

"The importance of this story is well documented and is becoming more widely known thanks in part to the 'looming battle' over its future," Brooks said on social media. "It all comes down to what will happen to 21 acres of valuable 'dirt' at the base of the Fort. On these 21 acres lived the recently freed African Americans who were forced by Union troops, to build this fort. On this a piece of dirt, they lived, died, and some most likely were buried."

Brooks's lengthy post was one-part history lesson and one-part rallying cry. He lauded Barry as a "good and well-intentioned" mayor. Brooks also praised Burnett for doing his part to make Cloud Hill "an entertainment center" and complimented Matthews as a "respected developer."

More:Archaeologists: ‘High likelihood of human remains’ at Greer Stadium

But, Brooks said those who want the property to become a public park need to step up.

"For those of us who would like to see a big open park for all citizens to enjoy, we know this chance will never come again," Brooks said. "If we can win this battle we have work to do. We will be responsible for cleaning up the mess and putting our money and effort where our passion for stopping this development this now lies.

More:Friends of Fort Negley petitions state to stop Greer Stadium redevelopment

"We will have to raise the money to tear down the stadium — less than a million dollars — and we will have to raise money to help create the alternative plan for a green space park that is devoted more to history than economic impact."

Brooks closed his post, which had 21 likes as of Wednesday morning, by saying he has had a vision of walking through the park as an old man.

"The battle is looming — hopefully there is a solution that results in our city doing the “right thing”  this is one we cannot afford to lose — Nashville is special, we cannot forget why!" Brooks said.

Barry has hit the pause button on moving forward with development plans at Greer Stadium as Metro awaits final results from an archaeological firm that is reviewing the site for potential human remains.

A preliminary report obtained by The Tennessean determined a “high likelihood of human remains” on portions of the property based on ground-penetrating radar that captures images below the surface. The archaeology has since brought in digging machinery for a process called “ground-truthing” for a more thorough underground analysis. A final report is expected by the end of the year.